Jeff Sessions

Attorney General Jeff Sessions spoke privately with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak twice last year, despite questions surrounding the Russian hacking scandal. During his confirmation hearings, the Alabama Republican said in sworn testimony, “I have been called a surrogate [for Donald Trump] at a time or two in that campaign and I did not have communications with the Russians.”

The ensuing scandal today has been rather fierce, and this afternoon, Sessions agreed to recuse himself from the investigation into the Russia scandal — a step many lawmakers in both parties demanded.

Embattled Attorney General Jeff Sessions bowed to pressure Thursday and said he would recuse himself from any federal probe of Russian interference in the presidential election.

Insisting again that he had no improper contacts with the Russians, Sessions said he nevertheless will withdraw because of his involvement in the Trump campaign. MORE

Rachel Maddow reports on the murky overlap between Ukrainian oligarch Dmitry Firtash, Vladimir Putin, and the Donald Trump campaign and alerts viewers to watch for whether the Department of Justice under Trump continues to pursue a case against Firtash.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer talks with Rachel Maddow about the aspects of Jeff Sessions’s record and disposition that disqualify him for the position of attorney general, and condemns his Republican colleagues for being afraid to stand up to Donald …